


The Burden of a Heart

by Karinchai



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, Established Relationship, Eventual Happy Ending, Love Confessions, M/M, Minor Character Death, Mute Keith (Voltron), Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-08-05
Updated: 2018-08-05
Packaged: 2019-06-22 12:27:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,947
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15582000
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Karinchai/pseuds/Karinchai
Summary: Slow burn soulmate AU.There are two prerequisites to finding your soulmate.First, you must fall in love.The second is that you must tell them 'I love you'.If they're your soulmate, your world will no longer be black and white.





	The Burden of a Heart

**Author's Note:**

> So, this is gonna be a long one. It's gonna go S L O W, so p l e a se be patient. The Klance is the Slow burn the Adashi is the established relationship.  
> I fully intend to finish this if it kills me though.

Shiro sat, holding his hands over his head as he pushed his hair back. He looked pale and shaken... broken even. He huddled in his chair, his smaller frame chattering in the metallic seat as he wove his hands together and apart. Over and over again his fingers interlaced, before breaking apart. His teeth shredded at his bottom lip, pulling the skin apart as he struggled to breathe. Doctors, nurses, worried patients and their families whizzed back and forth till it became a sickening blur. It was dizzying, frightening. Sitting in this seat, in this place, so late at night. Heinous. That was the only would that etched itself into his head, utter blank hatred. Why did it have to be them? The Kogane's had taken him in like he was their own. If he had-  
If he had been there with them, he'd be in one of those rooms too.  
"Takeshi!"   
His world stopped rushing as he stared up, snapping out of his trancelike state. There in front of him was the only thing he had left in this world. No, Could have. He wasn't going to write them off yet he couldn't, they would be fine. They were going to come back.  
"Takeshi." There it was again, gentler this time, Adam sat next to him now, gently rubbing his back. Shiro had found himself cowering in the smaller teens arms "What happened?" The brunette was stable, holding a serious but soft look at Shiro as he tried to decipher some sort of code in his eyes.  
"T-There was a crash. They were going to that Caravan for the Weekend with the Holts." He took a shuddering breath "They're all in Critical Care. There was something about a hit and run with a van..." He stared at his hands as his voice caught in his throat.   
"...No..." Adam's face fell as he held Shiro impossibly closer, cradling him, protecting him "They're gonna be okay. They're gonna be fine. The doctors know what they're doing." He took a deep breath, his hands gently rubbing circles into Shiro's back.  
"...What if..." Shiro clenched his fists, fighting back a sob as he looked up to Adam for answers.  
"No 'What ifs' right now, okay?" Adam smiled weakly.  
They stayed huddled like that for hours, Shiro lost track of staring at the clock as his colorless vision dimmed as she slowly fell asleep on Adam, who simply nodded to himself and held the boy.  
He would protect him.

There was nothing protecting him from the news.   
The funeral was on the 5th. Keith was still in care, and it seemed he was going to pull through, but that didn't stop Shiro being a mess after he'd heard of their deaths. Kroila was like a second mother to him, she had insisted he stay with them as long as he needed. Adam supposed there was no real way to not be broken, but he knew Shiro was trying to pull himself together for Keith's sake. In the will, they had left Keith in Shiro's care, meaning the young man had been under even more pressure.   
The least he could do was stay by his side.

It was three weeks until Keith was finally released from the hospital. He was quiet, reclusive. He clung to Shiro after he came home, he clung to the shreds of his parents he had. It was hard to see him being able to move forward for a long time, he and Shiro needed each other to manage themselves. But Keith was too broken. He refused to go to any vocal therapy appointments, and after a while, the Doctor's admitted there would be no way to recover his voice. The admission seemed to throw Keith over the edge entirely, the boy rarely even leaving his bed, let alone his room.   
Shiro sighed as he lay across the floor, taking a deep and shuddering breath. Trying to understand what he should do, what he could do. Trying to understand... anything.  
"Takeshi, you need to get to bed." Adam sighed, sitting next to him as he threw a drying cloth over a nearby seat.  
"I know, I just... can't sleep."  
"I figured."  
"You've been great though. Beyond great. I don't know if I could have done this without you." Shiro stared at Adam, a small smile quirking at his lips.  
"You're damn right I have." Adam puffed out his chest as the two burst into giggles. "But, you would have been fine. You adore that kid, you'll swallow all your emotions to protect him, I'm just here to protect you."  
"Adam..." Shiro's eyes softened as he gently grabbed his hand "Thank you."  
"It's fine, we're best friends right?"  
"Yeah." Shiro hesitated.  
"Listen..." Adam took a deep breath "We need to talk about-"  
"Keith right?" Shiro smiled.  
"...Yeah, Keith." Adam sighed slightly "He needs to see someone, not just for him, for you too."  
"I... Know. I just don't want to push him too much, he's gone through so much." Shiro looked at his hands.  
Keith held his breath from behind the door frame, listening in as he looked down guiltily before his small figure tiptoed back up the stair"Yeas, wiping his tears.

"We need this." Shiro stared Adam down "Keith needs this! These past few years he's been making leaps and bounds. Sure, the therapy wasn't for him, but he's trying. He struggled so much the first year of high school, I think... a fresh start is needed."  
"Takeshi I know... I just..." Adam looked at his hands "Takeshi how much do I matter to you?"  
"Adam?" Shiro stared at him, his breath hitching.  
"Here I thought I was finally making progress, that you might... ask me to come with you." Tears fell down his face as he quickly wiped them away "Takeshi Shirogane, I love you." Adam took a step forward, locking eyes with the taller male.  
"Wh-..." Shiro's eyes dilated, as tears started streaking down his face, the world around him taking on a new shape as he fell backward, crashing into the floor.  
"Takeshi!" Adam dove forward, accidentally crashing into Shiro as they ended up entangled on the floor.  
"Of course I want you to come with me, Adam." Shiro declared, after catching his breath, guiding Adam's face towards him as he tapped their foreheads together "I love you."  
There are two prerequisites to finding your soulmate. First, you must fall in love. The second is that you must tell them 'I love you'.  
If they're your soulmate, your world will no longer be black and white.  
That day, Adam's world burst into a flurry of colors.

Keith stared at his alarm clock disdainfully as he collapsed back into his bed. He threw it with little power at the wall, it still sounded an ugly clank as it collided with the wall. Rolling over he closed his eyes, hoping to get 5 more beautiful, wonderful minu-  
"Up and at em' kiddo!" Just like that, it was gone. Shiro hurling the younger boy over his shoulder with a hearty chuckle.  
"First day of your new Highschool Keith! Aren't you excited?" Adam smiled as Shiro carried him into the kitchen "I made you both breakfast."  
"You're a godsend." Shiro bounced on the balls of his feet, dropping Keith in his seat as he furiously signed to his adopted older brother.  
"Yes, yes, we get it. You're old enough to walk yourse-" Shiro paused "No I think I translated that wrong..."  
"He said he's mute, not crippled." Adam laughed, placing a plate in front of Keith.  
'This is why I prefer Adam' Keith pulled a prewritten card out of his pajama pocket.  
"I hate that damn card," Shiro grumbled as he ate.  
"Alright, Enough chatter. You don't want to be late."

Keith wanted to be late. Precisely so late there was no point in even showing up. But he couldn't do that because that would make Shiro upset, and he didn't want to make Shiro upset. Adam would be mad too. He sighed as he left the house, shrugging on his jacket with ease and swinging his black backpack back and forth with a bored swagger. Slowly etching down the road, a snail's pace, one might say. But Keith wasn't that one, he had music blaring in his ears and he'd never make that kind of joke. Totally. The idea of Keith being a snail kind of made sense though, Snails were silent... right? The Set it Off song changing in his ears idly reminded him he was dawdling as he upped the pace. Ripping off the band-aid slow was always the worst way to do it, so let's just... get this day over with! Keith found peace with that for now, it was an excuse enough to keep going.   
He was doing great with this mindset, until he collided directly with someone, stumbling back as he rubbed his arm. The boy standing in front of him... seemed kinda pissed? He had these dark eyes, dark... blue? If Keith peered close enough. Which, he totally wasn't doing.  
Oh right, the guy.   
Slipping his earphones out he tilted his head in apology slightly.  
"You could at least say sorry." The boy sounded irritated.  
"..." Keith stared deadpan at the boy, squinting slightly.  
"What?" The boy eyed him back. Keith sighed, signing a quick 'I'm sorry' and hoping this idiot caught a hint-  
"Oh, sorry. ASL right?" The boy backed up, signing as he spoke. Keith stared, blinking a couple of times before smiling slightly, that was surprising, he simply nodded in response. The two people stood behind him approached.  
"Sorry about Lance, he's a bit of an airhead." The taller guy grinned happily.  
"You know ASL?" The tiny one spoke.  
"Yeah. You know the situation with my mom, I assumed you'd figure I knew it." Lance shrugged.  
"Oh right." The tiny boy nodded. Tiny boy with a surprisingly feminine voice. Was that a girl? Keith tilted his head.  
"I'm Hunk!" The taller one introduced, waving to the tiny... thing "This is Pidge."  
"The idiot is Lance." Pidge grinned "You're new here right? I heard we were getting a transfer student in our class, Oh... Lance can you?"  
"Yeah, yeah alright." Lance began signing as Keith quickly shook his hands in front of him, before calming down and signing that he wasn't deaf, only mute.  
"He can hear you, no worries." Lance glanced over at Pidge "He's mute, not deaf."  
"Oh, that's good. I mean, not that..." Pidge shook her head with a laugh "Scratch that okay?"  
Keith nodded with a slight smile.  
"Anyway, we're sorry for holding you up, dude." Lance offered a hand. Keith stared at it for a couple of moments before taking it and shaking it, simply smiling a little wider before the two groups parted ways. Keith walking with a slight skip in his step as he looked for the main building.

"Jeez, he was a bit indifferent." Lance frowned.  
"The cool mysterious type for sure." Hunk smiled "He seemed nice though."  
"You don't think he's gonna have girls all over him right?! That's my job- I mean, not that I'm scared He'll do better than Me at wooing the ladies or anything." Lance looked between Pidge and Hunk.  
"Yeah, I think he has you beat." Pidge laughed.  
"Eh?" Lance's face extended to a comedic level of surprise before dropping.  
"Just a little." Hunk motioned with his hands as the two dissolved into teasing giggles.  
"You guys suck sometimes!" Lance charged forward before turning around and pointing at them "That's it, that pretty looking guy is my Rival from now on!"  
"Pretty?" Pidge chuckled "Okay then."

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading the first chapter! It means a L O T.  
> I swear updates will probably? get a lot longer. I just struggle to start it up.


End file.
